Investing in the higher public education infrastructure is not an option for California, it is a necessity. As the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) noted, the retirement of the baby boomers represents the first time in California’s history that such a large and well-educated generation is exiting the labor force.

Their exodus from the workforce is the main reason the PPIC said the state will need 1.1 million more graduates with bachelor’s degrees in the next 10 years than are expected to graduate now. But meeting employers’ demand for educated workers will be challenging in California’s aging public higher education systems. Nearly 60% of the UC’s public buildings are more than 30 years old, with 42% of that space built between 1950 and 1980. In CSU, half the space is 40 years or older, and a third is more than 50 years old.

So if we wish to have the educated workforce keep the economy strong, we need to be sure we’re registered to vote and then vote yes on Prop. 13.